Despite what the headline says or any bit of criticism I might throw at Jordan Peele’s latest horror film Us, you should absolutely go see it. Original films of this budget are rare, and horror films have long been in a rut that Peele himself is singlehandedly taking them out of.
After the unexpected critically acclaimed hit Get Out was released to the masses, Jordan Peele was immediately a director to watch. For good reason as well. Get Out is one of the finest films to come out in decades as it combines solid filmmaking with biting satire and truly disturbing commentary on casual racism in America.
Making one of the best movies for an entire genre puts extremely high expectations on a follow up, and many were expecting greatness out of the Peele’s latest film Us. While I can confidently tell you that the movie is great, it does not reach the same level as his debut.
Us stars the Wilson family consisting of Adelaide played by the amazing Lupita Nyong’o, her husband Gabe Wilson played by Winston Duke, and their two kids Zora and Jason.
Adelaide’s PTSD is triggered as the Wilson’s embark on a summer vacation to the same place Adelaide had a traumatizing experience when she was younger when she saw an exact clone of herself while her parents were inattentive of her.
Right out of the gate, Us establishes itself to be far more ambitious from a filmmaking standpoint. Whether it’s long uncomfortable shots of rabbits that remind us of how innocence is often experimented on or a dance of combat in the shadows symbolizing that only context and perception can show what people will perceive as either civilized or animalistic, the film is oozing with style and creativity.
As far as imagery and metaphor, Us is chock full of it. It’s the perfect film to sit down and discuss every shot and decisions for hours. However, that much content has its downsides, especially since that meaning isn’t the main selling point of the film.
Get Out was far more upfront with its message because the film was about its message. It worked with it to create cohesive narrative that was subtle yet blatant to understand and left an impact.
Us, on the other hand, is a film about the good guys defeating the bad guys. The message and twist may lead you to think otherwise, but as far as how the movie is framed and how it is presented with its action scenes, jokes and clear distinction between characters it is a battle where the heroes try to kill the villains.
I’d go so far to say that upon entering the second act, the film functionally stops being a horror movie and transitions to a slightly disturbing action movie. It stops being a terrifyingly powerful force chasing a scared victim and instead becomes an ongoing fight between two seemingly equal forces along with jokes and casual remarks about killing. The only frights to be had after getting around half an hour in are a few scary faces and imagery that is only mildly uncomfortable the first time you see it.
None of this makes it any less fun, exciting or compelling. However, the movie appears to be so focused on action set pieces, creative imagery lore and continuously adding stakes that its message gets muddled and confused along the way.
The core of the story and message lies within the Adelaides and the struggle of two people born of different classes and battling for who gets the richer style of living while the youth, Jason, watches on waiting to imitate it. Rich and poor, privileged and not, both become murderous animals in the face of their social standing being challenged in one of the most brutal portrayals of the effects of capitalism to date.
Things get shaky when you take into account Gabe and Zora. They might have some independent meaning, but it is objectively not relevant to the plot. So, you get two people scared of some scary clones trying to kill them. They see it as self-defense and have no reason to see it as anything else, and that’s contradictory to the story they’re trying to tell.
Also consider that the entire world has their own murderous counterpart, leading to questions about what they did to the other under class people that were still not privileged but more privileged than the villains.
This can lead to an uncomfortable display of a “who is more miserable” discussion in who we should focus on in progressivism, another concept that is contradictory to the message of the film.
What Us gains in increased technical prowess is a loss of focus. A story where the message, while poignant in certain areas, is ultimately not the film’s most pressing matter leading it to be muddy and all over the place.
This isn’t necessarily to the film’s detriment, nor does a film need to have a meaning to be good, but it doesn’t feel as impactful as Get Out did. It felt like it was frustratingly just outside the line of greatness. It was fingertips away from being transcendent, instead of just being great.
Of course, ignoring the comparison to Get Out and taking the film as its own piece, Us is an exceptional film that showcases more than ever that Peele is one of the best talents currently working and deserves your attention.
Excellent performances from everyone involved, especially Nyong’o, is some of the finest acting you’ll ever see in a horror movie.
Whether it’s as good as Get Out or not, Us is a worthy addition to what will most definitely be legendary filmography. Peele is a once-in-a-generation talent, and you don’t want to miss history that’s happening right in front of your eyes.
